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The Blues have shut out three of their last five opponents. They
have not allowed a third-period goal their last nine games, a
franchise record. Those are two trends that please coach Ken
Hitchcock.

But he said after the Blues' 1-0 victory over Dallas on Monday
night that the team has to find another gear. Asked Tuesday to be
more specific, Hitchcock said it relates to the Blues' willingness
to battle in the hard areas offensively.

"I've watched and seen the gear for years," Hitchcock said. "I
know where it goes post All-Star break. Teams that are successful
post All-Star break are the teams that ramp up their defending game
and make it harder and harder for you to get to the net and score
goals. They ramp up the areas that frustrate the hell out of the
opposition. So we're going to have to learn how to deal with
that."

The lone goal in Monday's game, scored by T.J. Oshie, was a good
illustration. Oshie worked a give-and-go with teammate David Perron
and with Stars center Tom Wandell on his back, Oshie plowed through
the crease and beat goalie Kari Lehtonen with a slick move.

"That's a perfect example of the type of goals that you're going
to have to score — perfect example," Hitchcock said.

With only four games left before the All-Star break, beginning
Thursday night against Edmonton, Hitchcock wants to see more of
those examples.

Perhaps explaining the Blues' power play struggles much of the
year, the offense in general has been too perimeter-oriented. The
club ranks seventh in the NHL with 31.4 shots per game, but is 19th
in goals per game (2.56).

There are six players with double-digit goal totals, led by
Oshie and David Backes with 14. But only three teams in the league
(Colorado, Minnesota and Nashville) don't have a scorer with as
many as 14 goals.

"We're winning despite people having 'off' offensive years,"
Hitchcock said. "For us to get to another level, we're going to
have to get more people involved in the offense. What we need to
do, from within the group, we need to add the element of gritty
scoring. Not just pay the price defensively, but pay the price
offensively.

"It can't be two or three guys. It's got to be everybody — and
we're not there yet. We've got some guys in, some guys out and some
guys kind of dipping their toes in the water. We've got to really
push hard to get people to understand what that looks like and
demand that of people."

Few would question Backes' willingness to get dirty, but perhaps
the player leading the way with his net-front play is Oshie. He has
11 goals, 22 points and is a plus-10 in 32 games since Hitchcock
came aboard.

"He has been on me to play a more north-south game," Oshie said.
"He says when I'm skating, that's when I'm at my best. When I catch
myself not moving my feet, I try to get them going right away and
get back in plays. And then, I'm still trying to get to the net,
trying to fight to get there. That's where I'm getting all my
goals.

"It's great having Jaro (Halak) and (Brian Elliott) stand on
their heads and get these shutouts, but we need to start scoring a
little bit more. We were doing well for a little bit, guys getting
to the net, but we need to fight harder in the harder areas."

"I think the 'extra gear' is a little bit of peer pressure in
here to make the guy next to you (better)," Nichol said. "He thinks
he's going all out or he thinks he's a good player, but if you want
to separate yourself from a good player to a great player, it's
another gear.

"That's where you fortify your identity. It doesn't matter if
you're 20 years old or 37 years old — you think you're doing the
most, but you're not. You can always get a little bit more out of
you and when it comes from your teammate, it means a lot more than
coming from the coaching staff."

If Hitchcock doesn't see a more concerted effort to be physical
in front of the net during games, he says he'll find time to work
on it.

"We're going to have to practice this stuff rather than just
talk about it," he said. "I think you're going to see over the next
two or three weeks, we're really going to turn up the temperature
right at the end of practices and start going into the hard areas.
You're going to have people on your back, whacking and hacking. And
so that battle of will to create a scoring chance is going to have
to be there."

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